Umno deputy president and deputy premier Muhyiddin Yassin ( below ) today hinted that the 13th general election may just be around the corner.

Given th NONE is, he said that it is imperative to expedite the party’s transformation process because there is "a few months" left.

"I don't know when the prime minister will call for the next general election, but we all know that there is only a few months left," he said in his winding-up speech at the Umno general assembly today.

Word about snap polls has been moving around political circles, with some expecting it to be called in the first half of next year.

However, party vice-president Ahmad Zahid Hamidi poured cold water on the possibility of a snap polls next year.

“I don't think so. This is because we need time to improve the image of Umno and BN,” he told journalists after the AGM came to a close at 6pm.

Ahmad Zahid added that the party president and deputy president will go on a nationwide tour to meet the party grassroots next year.

They will be meeting not just Umno division leaders, but also all the 20,243 branch leaders.

History a must-pass subject for SPM

Meanwhile, Muhyiddin, who is also education minister, announced during his winding-up speech that it will now be made compulsory that all secondary school students pass the history subject.

With the move, students must pass the subject to be able to obtain the SPM certificate. This is in respond to complaints by Umno delegates about the state of the younger generations’ knowledge of history.

While it was previously made compulsory for students only to take history as a subject in the secondary SPM examinations, Muhyiddin ( right ) said starting 2013, it would be compulsory for students to pass the subject, along with Bahasa Malaysia.

“In this matter, the (education) ministry will improve the contents of the history syllabus by emphasising the aspects relating to the country’s constitution, with the aim of shaping a deep understanding of how this country which we love was shaped,” said Muhyiddin.

He added that 2014 would also see the introduction of history as a core subject in primary schools under the Primary School Standard Curriculum.

"As what has been raised by the representatives from Perak and Kedah, at the moment, history elements are only taught in the Local Studies subject," he said.

General election? Not so soon, says Mahathir